


let’s stop running from love

by kinetickait



Category: Andi Mack (TV)
Genre: Coming Out, Confessions, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, One Shot, Romance, Season 3 Finale, bench scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-26
Updated: 2019-07-26
Packaged: 2020-07-20 08:50:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19989397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kinetickait/pseuds/kinetickait
Summary: “So,” Cyrus squeezed TJ’s hand, “this is new.”Or, the rest of the bench scene.





	let’s stop running from love

_“Is there anything else you want to know?”_

_“Is there anything else you want to tell me?”_

_“Yeah. Is there anything you want to tell_ me _?”_

_“Yes.”_

TJ (finally, _finally_ ) grabbed Cyrus’s hand and carefully laced their fingers together. Cyrus wanted to sob with relief. Warmth spread from the tips of his fingers where they were intertwined with TJ’s, up through his arm, and bubbled up inside his chest. The chilly winter night suddenly didn’t feel so cold anymore.

“So,” Cyrus squeezed TJ’s hand, “this is new.”

The relieved smile on TJ’s face faded into a more serious expression. He looked earnestly into Cyrus’s eyes and took a deep breath. “I-is this okay?”

Cyrus scooted closer to the other boy on the bench. “Of course it’s okay. TJ, what I wanted to say is,” Cyrus cleared his throat and looked down at their linked hands, trying to find the words he needed. This was it. This was his chance to tell TJ that his feelings for the basketball player ran much deeper than friendship. And maybe, if the nervous grin and tight grip on Cyrus’s hand were any indication, the other boy liked him back.

“Wait,” TJ interjected. “I’ll go first.” TJ’s other hand ran anxiously through his dirty blond hair. With a slightly shaky voice, he said, “Cyrus, you’ve been one of the greatest friends I’ve ever had. I used to have a way of shutting people out and not letting anyone get too close to me. Then you came along, and all of that changed.

“You helped me realize there’s more to me than my math grade or the number of points I can score in a basketball game. I can let go of my insecurities when I’m with you. I can be myself without any judgment from you.”

TJ’s green eyes were soft and filled with some sweet emotion that Cyrus couldn’t place. _Fondness,_ Cyrus dared to hope _._ He realized then that he might just do anything in the world to keep TJ looking at him like that.

Guilt flooded TJ’s face and he looked to the ground with furrowed eyebrows. “Then Kira came into the picture. I was always comfortable and free to be myself while I was with you, but she tried to make me into someone I'm not. I wanted to give her a chance and be a friend to her, just like you did with me, but friends aren’t supposed to make you feel so bad about yourself.

“Cyrus,” TJ met his eyes once again, and Cyrus’s stomach swooped. “I’m sorry for not being around much lately. I should’ve realized sooner that Kira isn’t the nicest person to hang around. I’m sorry, too, for Costume Day. I hate knowing I let you down and hurt your feelings, and if I could go back in time and do it all over again, I would’ve shown up to school in my flip flops and board shorts.”

His gut wrenched at the reminder of Costume Day. Cyrus had tried to shove the image of TJ and Kira with their matching shirts to the back of his mind. Kira’s haughty voice saying ‘ _Double dribble. Get it?_ ’ still rang sharply in his ears, and the memory was like a knife twisting into his stomach.

“That certainly wasn’t a great day.” Cyrus studied TJ’s face, which was clouded with regret. “It hurt a lot, seeing the two of you in your basketball costume, especially when you didn’t tell me first.” TJ tried to speak up again, probably to say sorry some more, but Cyrus silenced him. “And the weeks after weren't exactly fun either. I really thought you didn’t want to be friends with me anymore, Teej. I thought I did something wrong.”

“No, it was _me_ who did something wrong-"

“But it’s okay now. Kira isn't here anymore. You said sorry, and I accept your apology." Cyrus noticed TJ's apologies had come a long way from ' _So_ _rry for not saying_ _sorry_.'He looked at the boy with a curious expression on his face. "I must admit, your apologies seem to be improving.”

“Well you do bring out the best in me. You bring out the best in everyone.”

“Oh really?” Cyrus teased. "Please do go on about how amazing you think I am.”

TJ huffed and rolled his eyes, but the smile never left his face. “You’re so annoying,” he muttered under his breath. “But…” TJ bit his lip and glanced away.

“But…?” Cyrus squeezed TJ’s hand again to get the other boy to meet his gaze.

“But you’re also the funniest, smartest, kindest, and most thoughtful person I’ve ever met, and I’m glad we’re friends.” TJ swallowed thickly. “And I don’t know if I want to be friends anymore. I mean, _just_ friends. I still want to hang out and watch movies and practice somersaults and go swinging with you and do all the things we normally do as friends. But I, uh, also want to do other things, like hold your hand.”

TJ brushed his thumb back and forth along the back of Cyrus’s hand, causing shivers to cascade through him. This was actually happening. Nervous excitement and anticipation coursed through Cyrus's veins as he struggled to believe the words he was hearing. They were holding hands and TJ said he wanted to keep holding his hand and he didn't want to be just friends and this _thing_ that had been happening between them where they would banter and flirt with each other wasn't just in Cyrus's head. He wasn't just deluding himself. It was real.

“So _more than_ friends?” Cyrus questioned cautiously.

TJ nodded. He wore a look of determination with just a sliver of uncertainty in his features, like he was still worried Cyrus might reject him. “More specifically, boyfriends,” TJ said. “Maybe. If you’re okay with that?”

Euphoria and exhilaration engulfed Cyrus. This could not be real. _Boyfriends._ He pulled his hand away from TJ’s. A look of disappointment on the other boy’s face transformed into one of confusion when he saw Cyrus use his hand to pinch himself on the arm. _Ow!_ The pinch definitely hurt, which could only mean one thing: this was one hundred percent real.

“Cyrus?” TJ looked on in mild amusement. “What are you doing?”

“I just had to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. Funnily enough, I don’t think I am.” He grabbed TJ’s hand again and interlocked their fingers. “So let me get this straight. You, Thelonious Jagger Kippen—”

“ _Shhh_ don’t say it so loud.” 

“— want to be my _boyfriend_?”

“Yes?” 

“So this means you like me as more than a friend.”

“C’mon Cy,” TJ glanced up at the sky in exasperation. “I thought we already established that.”

“Just wanted to make sure. Communication _is_ one of the most important things in a relationship.” Cyrus smiled softly. “ _Yes_. Of course I’ll be your boyfriend.”

TJ’s eyes widened as if he couldn’t believe Cyrus would actually say yes. 

“Don’t look surprised,” Cyrus told him. “If you weren’t so oblivious, you would’ve realized I’ve been pining after you for ages.”

The smirk on TJ’s face sent Cyrus’s heart stuttering at lightning speed. “ _Pining_ after me?

“And we _are_ holding hands.” Cyrus held up their connected fingers as evidence. “I know I only have like one other friend who’s a guy, but I’m still pretty sure the act of handholding isn’t something you do with your ‘bro.’”

The two of them burst into laughter and Cyrus’s heart fluttered with relief. For the longest time, Cyrus had felt like a weight was settled on his chest. It bore down on him every time he had looked at TJ and was reminded of his growing, not-just-friendly feelings for the other guy. But in the last few minutes, the burden was lifted and Cyrus felt the pressure dissipate from his mind.

Everything seemed so unreal. It was almost like some cliche teen romcom that he sometimes watched at sleepovers with Buffy and Andi. Never in a million years did Cyrus think he would be getting his happily ever after with the boy he liked. Yet, there was Thelonious Jagger Kippen, with his sarcastic smile and witty disposition and bright green eyes that could extinguish any coherent thought in Cyrus’s brain, saying that he wanted to be Cyrus’s boyfriend. His Not-So-Scary Basketball Boyfriend.

“So what were you going to tell me?” TJ asked as their laughter died down. “That you like me, or…?”

“Something like that…” Cyrus didn’t know exactly what he planned on saying. “I think I was going to tell you that I’m gay and that I have feelings for you, although I’m pretty sure we’ve established that by now." 

“So do you just like guys?” TJ raised his eyebrows. “I thought you said you had a girlfriend at some point.”

“Yeah, there’s a reason that relationship didn’t work out. That reason being, of course, that Iris is _not_ a boy.” Cyrus nudged TJ. “What about you?”

The basketball player chuckled. “Yeah, I’m definitely gay. I think I’ve known that for awhile but I tried to hide it somewhere deep inside me so nobody else could ever find out. There was a time not so long ago when I wouldn’t dare admit that to anyone. Not to my family or anyone at school and especially not to a guy I had a crush on.

“And then I met you, and the closer we became as friends, the more I realized how much I like you as more than a friend.” TJ’s cheeks were tinged with pink as he spoke, and he avoided looking Cyrus in the eye. “I like you a lot, and that scared me. I became too preoccupied with the thought of other people finding out. I was scared of what they would think of me or how they would judge me. But you helped me realize that I shouldn’t worry about others’ opinions of me. Your opinion is the only one I care about anymore, Underdog.”

Overwhelmed with affection and adoration, Cyrus pulled him into a warm embrace. He felt safe there, wrapped up in TJ’s arms with his head resting on the boy’s shoulder. He breathed in the scent of TJ's t-shirt, which smelled of laundry detergent and the cologne he had worn to the party.

“I’m so relieved,” TJ whispered into Cyrus’s neck. Cyrus’s stomach flipped over pleasantly.

“You know, Teej, we don’t have to tell anyone yet if you don’t want to. Not until you’re comfortable.”

TJ’s fingers gripped the back of Cyrus’s shirt tightly. “No, I want to. I mean, only if you're okay with it. I wanna be able to hold your hand in public and hug you whenever I want and walk you to all your classes and brag about how smart my boyfriend is to anyone who asks about you.”

“Yeah,” Cyrus sighed contentedly into TJ’s shoulder. He thought about what a future with TJ would look like. Cyrus imagined dates at the park, holding hands by the swing set, or sharing milkshakes at The Spoon. He wondered what it'd be like to tell Andi and Buffy that he had his very first boyfriend. _Boyfriend_. Cyrus was still filled with awe and a bit of disbelief over the word. _TJ Kippen is my boyfriend._ “I’d like that too.”

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this at like 4am so i apologize for any sleep-deprived mistakes in this
> 
> let me know what you think:) i'll probably be writing more fics this week to try to cope with the fact that there won't be any more episodes ahahaha time to cry
> 
> go yell at me about andi mack on my sideblog @goodhairgoodman


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